Media Centre

Canada’s New Government Delivers on its Priorities in Parliament

Ottawa, December 18, 2006 –  The Honourable Rob Nicholson, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform, today underlined the outstanding parliamentary and legislative achievements of Canada’s New Government.

"I am very pleased with the progress we have made since Parliament opened on April 3," stated Minister Nicholson. "The government has worked hard to ensure that this minority parliament produces real results for Canadians. As a result, Canadians will have more accountable government, tax relief, increased support for families and children, and safer streets and communities."

Canada’s New Government delivered on its top priorities by passing the Federal Accountability Act, which strengthens accountability and increases transparency and oversight in government operations. Parliament also passed Budget 2006 legislation this spring to reduce the GST from 7% to 6% and implement the Universal Child Care Benefit. It also passed legislation to implement the Canada-U.S. Softwood Lumber agreement.

The House of Commons also voted by an overwhelming margin to support a motion to recognize that the Québécois form a nation within a united Canada. In addition, it had a truly free vote on restoring the definition of traditional marriage, as the government promised during the election campaign.

Canada’s New Government has taken important steps to implement its democratic reform agenda, with key bills to provide for consultations with Canadians on their preferred Senate candidates, establish fixed dates for elections, limit the tenure of new Senators to eight years, and improve the integrity of the electoral system.

Parliament passed the government’s first get tough on crime bill, to crack down on street racing and is considering 11 bills to make Canada’s streets safer, including legislation to end conditional sentences for serious offences, implement mandatory minimum sentences, establish a ‘reverse onus’ for bail for firearms offences, raise the age of consent for sexual activity from 14 to 16 years, provide tougher sentences for dangerous offenders and crack down on drug-impaired driving. The Environment Legislative committee will also begin its study of the government’s Clean Air Act.

Attached is a detailed list of legislation and other initiatives considered by Parliament since the beginning of the 39th Parliament. The list is also available at www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/lgc under the heading ‘Media Centre’.

For information, contact:
Office of the Leader of the Government
in the House of Commons
and Minister for Democratic Reform
(613) 952-4930

39th Parliament of Canada Report on Legislation and Special Events
April 3, 2006 to December 14, 2006

Ch. 1, 2006 (C-4) An Act to amend An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act and the Income Tax Act
Replaces a sunset respecting party registration provisions with a requirement for a mandatory review of the party registration provision, within two years, by a committee of the Senate and a committee of the House of Commons.

Ch. 2, 2006 (C-8) An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the public service of Canada for the financial year ending March 31, 2007 (Appropriation Act No. 1, 2006-2007)
Provides sums of money for the interim operations of the public service of Canada for the financial year ending March 31, 2007.

Ch. 3, 2006 (C-15) An Act to amend the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act
Improves agricultural marketing support by consolidating the Spring Credit Advance Program (SCAP) and the Advance Payments Program (APP) under the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act, extends coverage to livestock producers and other storable crops, and improves provisions for advances, borrowing, and accessibility to emergency cash advances.

Ch. 4, 2006 (C-13) An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on May 2, 2006
Implements various measures arising from the 2006 Budget, including the GST reduction from 7% to 6% and the Universal Child Care Benefit.

C-5 An Act respecting the establishment of the Public Health Agency of Canada and amending certain Acts
Establishes the Public Health Agency of Canada and the powers of the Chief Public Health Officer.

C-2 An Act providing for conflict of interest rules, restrictions on election financing and measures respecting administrative transparency, oversight and accountability
Measures to strengthen accountability and increase transparency and oversight in government operations.

C-34 First Nations Jurisdiction over Education in British Columbia Act
Authorizes the negotiation of Education Jurisdiction Agreements with First Nations in B.C. to increase First Nation responsibility for on-reserve elementary and secondary education.

C-38 Appropriation Act No. 2, 2006-2007
An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the public service of Canada for the financial year ending March 31, 2007.

C-39 Appropriation Act No. 3, 2006-2007
An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the public service of Canada for the financial year ending March 31, 2007.

S-5 Tax Conventions Implementation Act, 2006
Implements three tax treaties with Korea, Finland and Mexico, which will come into effect on January 1, 2007.

C-17 An Act to amend the Judges Act and certain other Acts in relation to courts
Implements the government’s response to the Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission respecting judicial compensation.

C-19 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (street racing) and to make a consequential amendment to the Corrections and Conditional Release Act
Creates a separate Criminal Code offence for street racing, provides for mandatory minimum driving prohibitions that increase for subsequent offences, and increases the maximum punishments for street racing offenders.

C-24 Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006
Implements measures in the Canada-US softwood lumber agreement.

C-25 An Act to amend the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act and the Income Tax Act and to make a consequential amendment to another Act
Strengthens Canada’s anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing regime.

S-3 An Act to amend the National Defence Act, the Criminal Code, the Sex Offender Information Registration Act and the Criminal Records Act
Modifies the military justice system to ensure that individuals who are convicted of sexual offences are subject to the Sex Offender Information Registry Act (SOIRA) which came into force on December 15, 2004.

S-4 An Act to amend the Constitution Act, 1867 (Senate tenure)
Limits the tenure of future Senators to 8 years.

C-9 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (conditional sentence of imprisonment)
Limits access to conditional sentences.

C-12 An Act to provide for emergency management and to amend and repeal certain Acts
Replaces the Emergency Preparedness Act with a modernized framework for federal emergency management activities and federal disaster assistance to the provinces and territories.

C-16 An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act
Provides for federal elections to be held on the third Monday in October in the fourth calendar year following the last general election, unless the government loses the confidence of the House of Commons prior to that date, and establishes the date for a general election to be held on Monday, October 19, 2009, unless a general election has been held before this date because of the dissolution of Parliament.

C-28 Budget Implementation Act, 2006 No. 2
Implements tax-related measures announced in the 2006 Budget that were not included in C-13, the Budget Implementation Act, 2006 No.1, such as the children’s physical fitness tax credit and the enhanced dividend tax credit.

C-7 An Act to amend the National Defence Act
Responds to recommendations from the independent review of the National Defence Act, known as the Lamer Report, which was tabled in Parliament in November, 2003, by aligning the military justice system with civilian legal standards and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

C-20 An Act respecting airports, airport authorities and other airport operators and amending the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Act
Modernizes the statutory provisions for airports, including corporate governance and accountability.

C-21 An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Firearms Act (non-registration of firearms that are neither prohibited nor restricted)
Repeals the requirement to obtain a registration certificate for firearms that are neither prohibited firearms nor restricted firearms.

C-27 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (dangerous offenders and recognizance to keep the peace)
Manages and controls dangerous offenders in order to protect Canadian families and children from known individuals who are at a high risk to re-offend.

C-29 An Act to amend the Air Canada Public Participation Act
Ensures that Air Canada’s corporate restructuring complies with federal official language obligations.

C-32 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (impaired driving) and to make consequential amendments to other Acts
Strengthens laws against alcohol- and drug-impaired driving.

C-33 Income Tax Amendments Act, 2006
Technical amendments to the Income Tax Act released in draft form in July 2005, including amendments concerning Foreign Investment Entities and Non-Resident Trusts and amendments related to bijuralism.

C-35 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (reverse onus in bail hearings for firearm-related offences)
Creates a reverse onus for bail hearings for anybody charged with an indictable firearms offence.

C-36 An Act to amend the Canada Pension Plan and the Old Age Security Act
Technical changes to the Canada Pension Plan, including full funding and disability benefits agreed to by federal, provincial and territorial Finance Ministers, and modernizes the administration of the Canada Pension Plan and the Old Age Security program.

C-40 Sales Tax Amendments Act, 2006
Technical amendments to the Excise Tax Act, the Excise Act, 2001 and the Air Travellers Security Charge Act.

C-41 An Act to amend the Competition Act
Allows the Competition Tribunal to impose fines in the telecommunications sector for anti-competitive behaviour.

C-42 An Act to amend the Quarantine Act
Technical amendments to section 34 of the Quarantine Act to improve clarity and consistency with international health regulations.

C-43 Senate Candidates Consultation Act
Establishes a national, election-like process to consult citizens regarding their preferred Senate candidates in a province where there are Senate vacancies, without altering the power of the Governor General to make appointments.

C-44 Repeal of Section 67 of the Canadian Human Rights Act
Repeals section 67 of the CHRA, to ensure that Aboriginal people have the same recourse to human rights protection as other Canadians.

C-45 Fisheries Act, 2007
Modernizes the Fisheries Act, including provisions related to access and allocation stabilization frameworks for the Atlantic and Pacific coastal fisheries, and creates an administrative sanctioning system, legally enforceable fisheries management agreements, and fisheries management orders.

C-6 An Act to amend the Aeronautics Act and to make consequential amendments to other ActsModernizes statutory provisions respecting the development, regulation and supervision of civilian aeronautics and the responsibility of the Minister of National Defence with respect to aeronautics relating to defence.

C-10 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (minimum penalties for offences involving firearms) and to make a consequential amendment to another Act
Establishes a new penalty regime for firearms offences, with higher mandatory minimum penalties applied to serious repeat firearm offenders.

C-18 An Act to amend certain Acts in relation to DNA identification
Technical amendments to the Criminal Code, DNA Identification Act and the National Defence Act.

C-22 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (age of protection) and to make consequential amendments to the Criminal Records Act
Amends the Criminal Code to rename the Age of Consent to the Age of Protection and raises the age from 14 to 16 years.

C-23 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal procedure, language of the accused, sentencing and other amendments)
Technical changes to the Criminal Code to improve administrative efficiency.

C-37 An Act to amend the law governing financial institutions and to provide for related and consequential matters
Modernizes statutory provisions governing financial institutions.

S-2 An Act to amend the Hazardous Materials Information Review Act
Modernizes hazardous materials information procedures.

C-30 Canada's Clean Air Act
Establishes a comprehensive and integrated approach to tackling air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

C-11 An Act to amend the Canada Transportation Act and the Railway Safety Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts
Modernizes statutory provisions for passenger rail to address urban transportation challenges and provides an exemption from federal regulation to Ottawa’s O-Train, consistent with a request from the City of Ottawa and the Province of Ontario.

C-14 An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (adoption)
Enables foreign persons who were adopted by a Canadian citizen, either as a child or an adult, to become a Canadian citizen without first becoming a permanent resident.

C-26 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal interest rate)
Allows for the regulation of the payday lending industry by the provinces and territories, in order to provide Canadians with greater protection from unfair borrowing costs.

C-31 An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act and the Public Service Employment Act
Provides administrative and operational improvements to the electoral system, including new measures to protect against voter fraud.

C-3 An Act respecting international bridges and tunnels and making a consequential amendment to another Act
Provides federal oversight over new and existing international bridges and tunnels to better protect the public interest and ensure the efficient flow of international trade.

1. Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne
   (April 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11 and 24, 2006)

2. Budget 2006 (May 3, 8, 9 and 10, 2006)

3. Renewal of North American Aerospace Defence (NORAD) Agreement (May 3, 2006)

4. Extension of Canada’s commitment in Afghanistan (May 17, 2006)

5. Québécois form a nation within a united Canada (November 24 and 27, 2006)

6. Definition of Marriage (Debated December 6, 2006; defeated December 7, 2006)

1. Agricultural issues (April 6, 2006)

2. Afghanistan (April 10, 2006)

3. On-going crisis in Darfur (May, 1, 2006)

4. Sudan (October 3, 2006)

1. Prime Minister of Australia (May 18, 2006)

2. President of Afghanistan (September 22, 2006)

1. Child care (May 4, 2006) - Liberal

2. Kyoto Protocol (May 11, 2006) - Bloc

3. Pesticides (May 16, 2006) - NDP

4. Cultural expression (May 30, 2006) - Liberal

5. Gas prices (June 1, 2006) - Bloc

6. Canadian economic growth (June 8, 2006) - Liberal

7. Seniors (June 15, 2006) - NDP

8. Kelowna Accord (June 19, 2006) - Liberal

9. Canadian women (September 28, 2006) - Liberal

10. Older workers (October 5, 2006) - Bloc

11. Economic and fiscal position (October 19, 2006) - Liberal

12. Canadian Forces (November 2, 2006) - NDP

13. Québécois form a nation (November 23, 2006) - Bloc

14. Health care (November 28, 2006) - Liberal